Wednesday 10 December 2008 08.33 EST
First published on Wednesday 10 December 2008 08.33 EST

At 10am today Lieutenant Colonel Reg Guille opened the door of the island hall on Sark and quietly ushered in the end of more than 400 years of feudal rule.

Under the watchful eye of Guille, the judge and returning officer on this tiny Channel island, along with a healthy selection of the world's press, Roger Olsen was head of the queue to cast his vote in Sark's first fully democratic election.

Olsen, a member of the parliament, the chief pleas, posted his slip, tapped the box and declared it a "happy day".

"Sark has an opportunity to express itself, to determine its own destiny," he said. "We like to make our own decisions. Now we're set up to do exactly that."

Suzie Thorpe was the next of the island's 474 electors to put her Xs next to her 28 preferred candidates. Then she was dashing off to catch the boat back to Guernsey.

"It's very exciting. It's good for the island," she said.

What issues was she concerned about? "We need a good sustainable economy. But we don't want the island to change too much. We don't want any helipads, thank you."

She admitted that the election had become bitter. "It's very sad. It didn't have to be like that."

Since the 16th century, Sark has been a feudal state, the last in the western world. But human rights legislation means that it is no longer legal or, for many, acceptable for a largely unelected parliament to rule the island.

Change was needed but the move towards electoral reform has been a rocky one. Two strongly opposed factions have emerged on this three-mile long chunk of car-less paradise close to the French coast. Broadly, one supports multimillionaire Barclay brothers, David and Frederick, the owners of the Telegraph and the Ritz, who live on a smaller rocky islet, Brecqhou, close to the main island.

DB and FB - as their loyalists here call them - are ploughing millions of pounds into Sark, refurbishing its muddy little main street and buying up most of the hotels. The twins argue this investment is creating jobs and protecting Sark's future.

A second faction favours the feudal lord, the seigneur, Michael Beaumont, and is worried that the Barclay twins are trying to seize control of the island and will change its character forever.

So Thorpe's comment about helipads was a dig aimed at a Barclay plan.

Peter Stisted was one of the next in the queue to vote. He is one of the candidates on a list that the Barclays' island bulletin, Sark News, says would be a disaster for the island if elected. But he seemed cheerful enough if a little shaky. "It's incredibly nerve-wracking. I can't believe it's so serious. It's one of the most important days of my life. I think the community is going to win. The corporate entity cannot succeed against the island."

There was the odd slogan in evidence. Barclay naysayers handed out badges showing images of a helicopter and the message: "No thanks" scrawled across it.

Publican Paul Burgess is on a list of nine candidates who have won the approval of the Barclays' bulletin. He stationed himself outside the hall in a smart suit and bright tie to try to mop up any wavering voters.

He admitted that he could not find 28 candidates who were deserving of his job. Burgess, Budgie to his mates, said he supported the Barclays' investment - but was really standing to give the working man a voice. "It's going to be an interesting night," he said.

The count will take place at 6pm this evening and the result known a few hours later. In the New Year the last old-style parliament will be disbanded and the first fully elected body sworn in to take its place.

Another early voter, Shirley Carré, arrived in 1960 from Rochester, New York, to do a study on this last bastion of feudalism in the west. She fell in love with the place, and with a man, and stayed. "I've seen it work, now I'm seeing it vanish," she said.